>> this is "bbc world news." funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its global expertise to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you?

>> and now, "bbc world news." >> the united states imposes financial sanctions on libya. while the u.n. security council considers further measures. armed yourselves and fight for me, muammar qaddafi's message in tripoli. but qaddafi's opponents face protest until they're stopped in a hail of bullets. welcome to "bbc world news," broadcast to our viewers on pbs in america and also around the globe. coming up later for you, on the coast of civil war, thousands of clashes between rival forces. as the recovery operation continues in new zealand, that submerged people from more than 20 countries died in the earthquake.

in the past few hours the united states has imposed sanctions on libya, while the united nations is considering further action in response to the bloodshed in the country. president obama said the sanctions would target the assets of colonel qaddafi, members of his family and the libyan government while at the same time protect the interest of the libyan people. britain and france have drafted the u.n. security council resolution, which calls for an arms embargo as well as multilateral sanctions. earlier i spoke to our correspondent in new york. the timing was important because the president waited until the evacuation of all u.n. nationals from libya before imposing sanctions. >> that was a concern for the united states and some other european countries who have quite a lot of nationals in libya to be seen to be taking strong action while their citizens were still at risk in the country. now president obama has formalized what his officials announced earlier today, which

is the position of financial sanctions, particularly they are freezing the assets and the property of libyan individuals and government in the united states. so the individuals include the family members of colonel mumetar qaddafi, senior liberal officials designated by the u.s. treasury and they include anybody that can be connected to either having responsibility for or being complicit in human rights abuses in libya. the government assets that have been frozen, the president made a point of saying this was to protect the assets of the libyan people because he said there was a danger they might be misappropriated by the regime. >> and on saturday the u.n. security council will meet again. what likelihood of the security council following the u.s.' actions? >> i think it's a very strong likelihood because the -- the moves seem to have been coordinated to some degree and

certainly they reflect a consensus in the international community about what sort of action can be taken, what sort of action can be agreed on. you've not only had the statement by president obama, you also have a decision by the european union, which is expected to be formalized next week to have targeted sanctions against members of the regime as well as arms embargo. both of those two propose are also in a draft resolution, which the security council is debating and it's expected that they will be passed. there are other elements in this council resolution which are more controversial. one of them is a proposal to refer the situation in libya to the international criminal court for an investigation into whether war crimes had been committed. we know there's opposition in some -- on some quarters to that, that proposal and there will be debate on that as well. >> there's nothing the u.n. can really do about the particular gripe that libyans themselves have? many say it's all too slow. the u.n. must be painfully aware that its mechanisms have been

overtaken by events? >> well, the international community as a whole, including the european union and the united states, have also not acted probably as fast as the libyans would like but it has to be said the u.n. even then is behind the curve as it usually is because it involves the security council that has national members with different interests and different perspectives on what's happening. and this is a matter of interfering in the internal affairs of another state. now admittedly that state is being seen as more and more of a threat to regional security but still it means that the differences on the council affect how much you can actually agree on, usually it's the lowest common denominator. and i think that in this case what's happening is that the council is deciding to try and take the step that will at least take -- send a political signal to the libyan authorities that they are being watched, there could be reckoning for the actions they are taken and they

try to convince those around colonel qaddafi to effect. the fact is the measures they're discussing are limited and they're not actually going to really have that much of an impact on protecting civilians, although that is what the u.n. would like to do. so even there the u.n. is limited in what it can or -- or can agree on to do. >> barbara plat in new york. in libya itself, an angry and defined muammar qaddafi amongst thousands of cheers sue ports in italy appear to be in control at some areas near the capital. this came shortly after sources close to him opened fire in several parts of tripoli. earlier his son gave a television interview saying enhis father would never leave the country alive. we are in tripoli with and sends this report. >> in the open air at tripoli airport, lines of people waiting for a flight home. some in bright high visibility jackets seemed to be in

organized groups. others looked to be waiting for a long time. there are small encampments, some blankets and a lot of people dreaming of home. the airport is operating and getting on a plane with so many here is a big challenge. we have been invited by the authorities presumably so we can hear more messages of defiance and also so they can show us that here in the capital at least things are normal and that they're in crom. well, those scenes back at the airport were not normal. the libyan economy relies on the labor of tens of thousands of migrants and the ones that are left are getting out. translator: earlier there was another defiant message from colonel qaddafi and this time he chose green square above tripoli as his backdrop. he made more threats against the people he regards as libya's enemies.

colonel qaddafi's son, who seemed to be his heir apparent, was just as defiant. >> we have plan a, plan b, plan c. plan a is to live and die in libya. plan b is to live and die in libya. plan c is to live and die in libya. >> qaddafi's enemies seemed to be getting closer to home, closer to their power base here in the capital. can you tell me whether you agree with statements that have come out from plenty of people abroad who said this is the end game for your father and for the control of the qaddafi family here in libya?

>> it's about libya. libya should stay and remain united. second, the 6 million people got to get against my father. in egypt we sought millions of people on the streets. everybody was against the president. now you saw today what happened in tripoli. what happened in the main cities in libya. >> the bbc received these pictures showing anti-government protesters in the center of tripoli, marching after the noon prayer, chanting that they avenged the blood of the martyrs. and the bbc's also received these pictures which appear to show protesters being fired upon

as they leave a mosque in tripoli. a tpwhiss tripoli who wants to stay anonymous spoke to the bbc about an attack on worshippers. >> as we were just praying, the shooting started and as people came out, they were shooting out people. so a lot of my neighbors today died and the situation is horrible here. it's like insane. the sky is raining with bullets. >> this was west of tripoli yesterday. a marcher appears to be attacked by government forces. it's hard to be precise about what's happening town by town in this country but the trend has been consistent. the uprising is spreading.

this couple reached tunisia from saturday we'ria. >> it's all over. only tripoli's left now. everywhere else has fallen and qaddafi's finished. >> this is where the balance of power appears to be now. the rebels control most of the east. the regime holds the capital and qaddafi's hometown cert. other areas are still being fought over. the libyan leader is believed to be based in his compound, the capital. this seems to be the balance of forces. 7,000 to 8,000 in brigades loyal to colonel qaddafi and elite special forces who defected are believed to make up around 5,000. this evening here in libya, state television has been showing pictures of a rally in green square in the center of tripoli. the message from the regime is clear, there are problems in the country blamed by colonel qaddafi on drug-fueled young

people and al qaeda. as the regime stayed defiant, colonel qaddafi's i loyalists danced and sang in the center of the capital on a chilly and damp winter night. jeremy bone, "bbc world news," tripoli. >> the man once described as qaddafi's closest left lieutenants who quit the government in disgust at the recent violence said he believes the libyan leader is now finished. speaking to the bbc, the former interior minister said qaddafi would either fight to the death or kill himself. world affairs editor john simpson has this report. >> when the glon stations broke out here a week ago, general yunus was sent to crack down on them. instead he changed sides and rang colonel qaddafi a. peeling to him not to use force against benghazi. immediately afterwards there seems to have been an attempt to kill him. now he's in hiding here. we were driven to the outskirts

of ben gani to a secret location -- benghazi to a secret location where he agreed to speak to us. when i met him, told me he thought the qaddafi regime could only last a few more days. you know colonel qaddafi well. what will he do? will he resist to the end? >> muammar qaddafi won't surrender while he's alive. either he will commit suicide or desist to the force. >> do you think he's actually crazy? >> only god knows. i'm not qualified to make a judgment. >> he takes very dangerous decisions in a state of anger so he can't be sane. it's impossible to think he's completely sane. i broached the subject of the lockerbie bombing. had colonel qaddafi given the orders for it personally? general eunice was unhesitating. translator: there's no doubt

about it. nothing happens without qaddafi's agreement. i'm certain this was a national governmental decision. >> at the end of our interview, the general looked straight into the camera and spoke directly to the man he had known and served since 1964. translator: my dear brother when benghazi fell, you should have realized the end has come. i hope you leave for venezuela or anywhere else. may god show you the righteous way and stop the annihilation of our people. >> maybe general yunus has hopes of replacing colonel qaddafi but his 47 years as one of the colonel's closest aides don't exactly make him popular among those who want an entirely new libya. >> that's our world affairs editor john simpson reporting. for from john and jeremy barren on our "bbc world news" website

and we will also have a little bit more later in the program on the evacuation of foreigners from libya. here in the united states ted kingdom revised figures suggest the economy performed slightly worst than previously thought in the final part of last year with g.d.p. shrinking. but as our economic editor reports, the real danger to the economy long term could well be the sector of slow growth. >> it stands for gross domestic product, the sum of everything produced in the u.k. and we now have further proof we lost some in last year's fall. they think we shank by 4.6% in 2010, a bit worse than before. it wasn't a bad dream or statistical freak. these new numbers show the recovery did grind to a halt at the tail end of last year and not because of the weather.

the question now is how fast the economy is making up that lost ground. they had good news this week in red car. a thy company agreed to buy this steel plant in a deal that could secure 700 jobs and create hundreds more. if the recovery is too slow, people who lost the job in the recession could be locked out of the labor market for years. >> this is the overall picture which shows 148,000 -- >> insolvency experts like nick hood say a slow recovery could also be a death sentence to many firms. >> extraordinary numbers are we're at 30-year low and the numbers go bust if the low is for 30 years. but if we get vigorous growth, then one pattern will emerge. if we get slow or flat lining position, then i think we can expect 2011 to be a much darker year than 2010. >> the signs are the economy has put the dark days of winter

behind it. we're going forward now, not back. and it's not just the direction the economy is going in that matters, it's also the speed. stephanie saunders, bb drfment news. >> this is bbc news. the headlines -- the ulets has imposed financial sanctions on libya while the u.n. security council is considering further measures. the libyan leader colonel qaddafi has told a crowd of supporters in the capital tripoli to arm themselves and fight for him after violence erupts once again in the city. a british royal navy frigate carrying more than 200 evacuees arrived the last few hours. it left the port of benghazi on thursday. earlier after ship's commanding officer captain steve dayton while the relatively short trip from libya had taken so long? >> we showed up at benghazi the night before last, sailing after

sunset. but the weather outside on the port and outside was pretty horrendous so as we had a number of gifts on board who were not used to being at sea, just in order to reduce their sea sickness and make them as comfortable as possible, we just reduced speed. >> that was the captain of h.m.s. cumberland. you saw the frigate dock. gavin, where have the 207 evacuees gone now, do we know? >> there are 60 british evacuees. there are 120 foreign nationals from 25 different countries. >> i think we have lost that line to gavin. the united nations has warned ivory coast is on the brink of a new civil war as post election violence gos to other areas. forces have clashed with reporters of watt ra, who is

nationally recognized as having won the election. david emblem reports. >> fearing for their safety, residents streak out of the district of avid john, a city in territory controlled by incumbent president laurel bagbo. thoughs leaving talk of gun battles and explosions -- translator: we heard gunshots until 4:00 in the morning. we could not sleep and we're tired now. >> we're living hell. it is hell. we are tired. >> a man rest is spreading with gunshots reported in the capital. a town in the west is also said to have been taken over by those pointing to oust mr. bagbo. he's been refusing to step down since november's presidential election. the u.n. and foreign leaders want him to hand over power to rival allison, who is seen as

the winner. he is receiving support from most of the armed forces. he can also rely on the backing of these people, youth supporters who belong to a group called the young patriots. earlier there's called for defense units to be set up to protect themselves and has ordered them to block u.n. peacekeepers. translator: i'm asking all east of ivory coast to organize militiament the u.n. fears ivory coast is a risk of relapsing into civil war. >> clashes between security forces loyal to mr. bagbo and armed groups opposing them have resulted in significant civilian fatalities in several areas of abu. once again i urge the forces loyal to mr. bagbo to stop the violence. >> elections were supposed to bring peace to ivory coast. instead residents are now

fleeing for their lives as the political stalemate continues. david emblemming. "bbc world news." >> officials in england warned a third of the building in christchurch center needs to be demolished. hundreds also thought to be too damaged to save. the number has risen to 120 and 200 still missing. earlier we asked the mayor just how his city is bearing up under the pressure. >> given the circumstances that we find ourselves in, remarkably well and extraordinarily complex. but fast-moving situation and central business district with a number of buildings severely damaged as you just stated a major search-and-rescue operation under way. it's united nations search-and-rescue people here that we got them from not only

around new zealand but from australia j.a. pan, from taiwan, from china, from the u.s.a., from the u.k., a team just arrived here from mexico. so a major thrust at the moment. as we are now to four days into this event is to push on as fast as we can as attempts to find people who we know lost in the wreckage of the buildings that has collapsed. and time is obviously very pressing. it's important that we have the numbers on the gloupped to do the work and that's what we've got. and then on the other side of the ledger, thousands of households, tens of thousands of households that currently don't have water, electricity, waste water systems and eroding network which is excite seriously damaged as well. so this is a major rescue and recovery operation, operating on a number of levels. it's been escalated to a national emergency in new

zealand, the sweeping powers that we need to get what we need from different organizations, to have the powers to lock down areas of the city. so it's a very difficult situation, but given what we're going through, our spirits are remarkably good. there are a lot of positive people who are totally focused on this effort. >> counting the voters in the republic of ireland after a general election in which the governing party was wildly expected to suffer heavy defeat. opinion polls before friday's election suggested voter anger over the collapse of ireland's economic boom could cost more than half of the parliamentary seats. the main opposition party is expected to head a new government. so big limos, small statues. one british export in particular has attracted plenty of buzz. it's "the king's speech."

the question is will it go over a big winner or will "the social network" reign supreme? >> it's the size of a circus tent, how fitting. and the main attraction is arriving. it takes more than a week to get the red carpet ready for hollywood's elite. this year they are a diverse bunch. >> i heard the rifle and i felt the ball. you missed your shot. >> among the contender "true grit" classic western remade by the coen brothers. the boxing drama "the fighter" christian bale and ma lisa leo are picked to win in the supporting actor category. >> he never would have won sanchez without his brother. >> natalie portman could add to a string of awards for "black swan." >> i need the alka rhythm. >> and "the social network" which won best film at the

golden globes has eight chances at the oscars. >> jack and jill went up the hill -- >> leading the field with 12 nominations is "the king's speech." it's this year's critical and commercial phenomenon. >> so thrilled how well it's doing in england and people are going out to see and it see it more than once. it surpassed any expectation i could have had. it's unbelievable. >> col' firth's hollywood man of the moment. meanwhile, here's a nominee you probably don't recognize. last week ian vance was directing a british tv soap opera. fame hasn't found him quite yet. >> who will win the oscar? >> still, he's nominated for his short film, "wish 143." >> getting up on that stage is a nerve-racking experience and you can imagine the kodak, jack

nicholson, colin firth, all of these amazing actors. what i said to myself, if by some miracle independent up on that stage, i'm not looking at the front row. i will just look straight ahead. >> for many being nominated is an honor itself. but on the biggest night on the showbiz calendar, no one wants to go home alone. >> a reminder of the main bbc news this hour. the united states has unilaterally imposed sanctions on libya. they are financial sanctions against colonel qaddafi and several of his family members as well as against the libyan government. president obama said the interest of the libyan people would be safeguarded. the united nations is considering further nacks response to the bloodshed in the country. the security council will resume its meeting from friday to saturday. this is bbc news. there's plenty more on our website. thanks very much indeed for your economy.

>> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold, get the top stories from around the globe and click-to-play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its global financial strength to work for a

wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet los angeles.